Number of coup plotters dwindling due to reforms – Noy

MANILA, Philippines - With reforms firmly in place, there are now fewer “potential recruits” for a coup d’etat against his administration than during the time of his mother, President Aquino said in his State of the Nation Address last Monday.

In his speech, he also deplored what he called the never-ending criticism of his administration led by groups associated with the previous administration whose businesses had suffered due to reforms.

Several coup attempts – two of which were bloody – marked the administration of his mother, the late Corazon Aquino. His mother was catapulted to power after the ouster of dictator Ferdinand Marcos in a civilian-led military uprising in February 1986.

“This is why, with a reformed system that has ended the people’s suffering, the number of potential recruits has dwindled, which explains why their group is getting smaller and smaller. It is only natural that they oppose us,” Aquino said.

“On the other hand, for those who have no other goal than to overthrow government: They can only recruit members when a great number of people are suffering and losing faith in the system,” he said.

He said “the noisiest and loudest” of his critics were those opposed to ongoing reforms, “precisely because they manipulated and benefited from the old and broken systems.”

“The truth is that I am not the one these people oppose, but the entire Filipino people who are now reaping the benefits of the straight path. My Bosses, they are against you,” Aquino said.

With the ongoing modernization of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, soldiers “can now protect our nation with greater confidence.” 

“They oppose the farmers in Iloilo, who have hoped for efficient irrigation systems for more than 50 years, the countless students who no longer study in overcrowded classrooms, the Filipinos who have found jobs because of training from TESDA,” he said. TESDA stands for Technical Education and Skills Development Authority.

He said his critics have become “desperate” as benefits of reforms have become clearer.

“It becomes more and more difficult for them to succeed in fooling the people, which is why they are sowing doubt and uncertainty. They have become desperate,” he pointed out.

One of the achievements of the administration that critics appeared to have ignored, he said, was the Department of Education’s Alternative Learning System, which benefited an Aeta woman and aspiring teacher Ma. Cecilia Fruelda, who now enjoys a regular job in Rosario, Zambales.

“It is her story – and the stories of many other beneficiaries like her – that is drowned out by the din of the orchestra of negativism in the news,” Aquino said.

“These noisy individuals willfully close off their minds and choose to live in their own world and reality,” he said.

“As the transformation of society becomes even more apparent, these people are acting just how we expect them to: Their attacks on us are becoming more frequent, more venomous and more intense,” Aquino said.

“In fact, their attacks began even before we came into office. We have grown used to being greeted by negative commentators for breakfast, personal attacks for lunch, insults for dinner, and intrigue for a midnight snack,” Aquino said.